FSHN 381

Development of High Fiber Dairy
Pudding Products using Ticaloid Lite HF
for Children’s Consumption

HNFAS Department
1955 East West Road, AgSci 216
96822 Honolulu, HI

*​
author
[1]

Abstract:
Dietary consumption of calcium and fiber during childhood is important in healthy
growth and the prevention of disease later in life, such as osteoporosis, obesity, and
cardiovascular disease. Increasing nutrient intake in children can be facilitated by the
development of food products that have greater than 10% of the daily value of nutrients, while
being convenient and appealing. In this experiment, two frozen chocolate puddings were
formulated using Ticaloid Lite High Fiber as the major thickening agent, one using liquid milk,
the other using dry milk. A nutritional analysis was conducted using the ESHA Food Processor
program, indicating that both recipes could make US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
specified claims as being “high fiber” products, as well as meeting FDA specified claims as
being “a good source of calcium” for adults, but not for children. A sensory analysis was
conducted on two separate panels, evaluating the products’ sweetness, appearance, texture,
enjoyability, and overall acceptability. Analysis results found that these tested were considered
acceptable for the liquid milk recipe, and all attributes tested, save texture, were considered
acceptable overall. Results indicated there was no significant difference between recipes,
suggesting that frozen chocolate puddings using liquid or dry milk were equally acceptable.
Limited significance was seen in the attributes of appearance, texture, and acceptability. Further
research should be conducted to improve the products’ overall acceptability by children and the
calcium quantity provided by frozen “high fiber” pudding products.

Introduction:
Dietary patterns developed in childhood and early adolescence are crucial to the
prevention of certain chronic disease states developed later in life, such as obesity, heart disease,

[2]

and osteoporosis (Stallings and Yaktine 2007). The latter of these, osteoporosis, is greatly
determined by bone mass. Low calcium intake during skeleton formation has been seen to
decrease overall bone mass (Heaney ​
et al. ​
2000), 45% of which is formed between the ages of 9
and 17 (Weaver and Heaney 2006). However, despite this increased need for calcium intake in
children, the most recent NHANES study (2001­2002) showed that 31% of 4­8 year olds did not
have an adequate calcium intake, defined as meeting or exceeding the DRI for children of
1300mg of calcium, 70% of males and 92% of females 9­18 years old also did not meet the DRI
for calcium. More than 70% of all calcium consumed by Americans is provided by milk and
milk products (DHS/ USDA 2005); because of this, it was proposed that a dairy product should
be developed to help meet the calcium needs of children from 6­12 years old.
Obesity and heart disease are also growing concerns in America. Similar to osteoporosis,
obesity and heart disease are also influenced by dietary patterns developed in childhood. Dietary
fiber is an important means of curbing appetite, thus limiting empty calorie food consumption.
Ticaloid Lite HF is a high fiber gum product with soluble fiber inulin as its main ingredient by
weight. Often used in gluten­free baking products, Ticaloid Lite HF is a guar gum extender that
delivers the functional benefits of guar gum, in addition to cellulose gum and xanthan gum (TIC
Gums 2010). This mixture of gums can impart a moderately stable viscosity to liquid systems.
The advantage of using gums as thickening agents in the production of pudding is that many of them do
not require the addition of heat to thicken liquids, and do not have the same syneresis effect as
puddings prepared with starch, which ultimately may lead to an extended shelf life. Ticaloid Lite HF
can thus be used in the production of pudding products which are able to make dietary fiber claims
when used in amounts of 4­6% by weight.

[3]

The most influential factors used by children age 6­12 when making food choices are

hunger, taste appeal, availability, and convenience (Neumark­Sztainer ​
et al. ​
1999). As a dairy
product, pudding provides calcium content in a medium that is convenient and has a desirable
taste. Puddings which use Ticaloid Lite HF as the major thickening agent have the added
advantage of providing soluble fiber to the diet.
The purpose of this experiment was to develop an acceptable pudding product­­ in
regards to aroma, taste, and texture­­ for children that met the FDA’s standards to be considered
a “Good Source of Calcium” product, using liquid or dry milk, and which utilized Ticaloid Lite
HF gum as the major thickening agent in a standard serving. It was expected that due to the gums
found in Ticaloid Lite HF, an acceptable pudding thickness could be achieved without the use of
additional thickening agents or heat. It was also expected that no significant difference would
appear between a product made entirely with liquid milk and a product made entirely with dry
milk, which in powdered form has the potential to be more shelf stable.

Materials and Methods:
Two primary recipes were selected to be analyzed for their acceptability in children, both
using the Ticaloid Lite HF as the main thickening agent of the pudding (Table 1). In addition to
this thickening agent, gelatin was selected to improve the overall thickening of the products. To
improve the overall mouthfeel of the products, butter was added to the final recipes. Chocolate
was chosen as the main flavor for the puddings to appeal to the preferences of children­the
projected demographic­ and to standardize the appearance of the two recipes. The puddings were
frozen to standardize the consistency between the two products, and to appeal to the projected

[4]

demographic by making a product that was easy to eat and relatively clean.

Sensory analysis was conducted using a 7­point hedonic scale that featured smiley faces
to convey acceptability of each of the analysed attributes (Figure 1). These attributes included
sweetness, color, and texture. Panelists chosen to participate in the sensory analysis included
students and faculty of the FSHN department at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa (N1=24),
who were available during the first testing day, and students in the FSHN 381 experimental
foods class (N2=16).
[5]

Figure 1. ​
Sensory Analysis form used to evaluate
the acceptability of two frozen chocolate puddings
geared toward children age 6­12 years old using a
hedonic 7­point scale illustrated by smiley faces

Recipes were analysed to determine their nutrient quality using the ESHA research Food
Processor program, paying specific attention to Calcium and fiber contents of the developed
products. Results from sensory analysis were analysed through a two­tailed t­test conducted
using Microsoft Excel to determine the significance of the overall acceptability of the products
and the important attributes that contributed to this acceptability.
Results:
Nutrient analysis of the two frozen pudding recipes­­Recipe #1 using liquid skim milk
and Recipe #2 using powdered fat free milk (Fig. 2) showed each 4floz serving of pudding
weighed 108g. Each serving supplied 5g of Dietary Fiber and 10% of the Daily Value of

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Calcium for an adult on a 2,000kcal diet.

Figure 2. ​
Nutritional Facts Panels for two selected recipes for
frozen chocolate puddings using Ticaloid Lite HF as the major
thickening agent. Recipes meet FDA requirements to be
classified as “high fiber” and “a good source of Calcium” based
on the Percent Daily Values for adults.

Results of the sensory analysis in both panels (N1 and N2) found that all of the attributes
assessed­­ sweetness, appearance (color), and texture had an average ranking over 3.75, (Fig.3),

[7]

which was more than the median ranking on a 7­point scale of 3.5.
Appearance (color) ranked the highest attribute in both recipes, with recipe #1: liquid
milk ranked 5.625±0.952 and recipe #2: dry milk ranked 5.35±1.145. The average results of both
panels showed limited significant difference when analysed using a two­tailed t­test. The only
significant difference noted was found when texture was analysed between the liquid milk recipe
(M=4.45, SD=1.34) and the powdered milk recipe (M=3.75, SD=1.60); t(78)=­2.13, p=0.04.
(Table 2)

Comparative results from the two­tailed t­test between N1 and N2 showed limited
significant difference within attribute rankings. For Recipe #2, significant difference was seen
when analysing appearance between the two panels, N1 (M=5.67, SD=0.96) and N2 (M=4.88,
SD=1.26); t(38)=2.25, p=0.03. (Table 3). Results from the two­tailed t­test for Recipe #1 using
liquid milk showed there was a significant difference when acceptability was analysed between
the two panels, N1 (M=4.35, SD=1.43) and N2 (M=3.27, SD=1.44); t(36)=2.27, p=0.03. (Table

[8]

4).

Discussion:
It was expected that the use of Ticaloid Lite HF as the main thickening agent of the
pudding product should prove to be simple, considering that this gum product primarily consists
of a combination of guar and xanthan gums, which are both used in the production of pudding
products. The TIC Gums website (2010) emphasised that the use of 4­6% by weight of Ticaloid
Light HF would produce an acceptable consistency with the added benefit of also allowing the
pudding product to be considered a “High Fiber” product under FDA classifications. Results
indicated that while Ticaloid Lite HF gum is not designed to be used in the production of
pudding products, acceptable thickness can be produced when 8­10% by weight is used if

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Ticaloid Lite HF is combined with another thickening agent. The majority of the thickening
power of the guar gum and xanthan gum that is present in Ticaloid Lite HF is weakened by the
presence of inulin.
The inability to develop an acceptable consistency in puddings using Ticaloid Lite HF as
the sole thickening agent in the pudding lead to the development of puddings also incorporating
gelatin. Gelatin, as it has a neutral flavor and odor, and is easily dispersed and hydrated, was
thought to be an ideal additional thickening agent (Mariod and Adam 2013). Gelatin also has the
additional benefit of preventing the formation of large ice crystals produced by temperature
variation in frozen products (Tessenderlo 2010). It was expected that this combination of
Ticaloid Lite HF and gelatin would provide acceptable thickness to the product without taking
away from the products overall attributes.
Results of the sensory analysis data gathered from both panels (N1 and N2) suggested
that there was limited significant difference between the attributes seen in Recipe #1 and Recipe
#2. This significant difference was only seen when analysing the texture of both products. The
cause of this difference is difficult to pinpoint, as there was no significant difference regarding
the products texture seen when panels were compared. One suggestion for this difference, with
the lower textural acceptability falling on Recipe #2, may be that the dry milk powder was not
completely dissolved in these samples. Undissolved milk powders are gritty and can cause
clumps when they absorb liquid unevenly (Hough ​
et al. ​
1997). Sifting the liquid through a
colander would eliminate the potential for undissolved globules to be present in pudding
products using powdered milk.
Significant difference between the two panels were seen in our results of the two­tailed

[10]

t­test. The first significant difference was seen in regards to the appearance of the pudding using
powdered milk, with the students in the experimental foods class ranking this attribute
significantly lower than the panel of students and faculty. This difference was most likely caused
by the production of two batches using the powdered milk due to the limited sample size
provided by the first batch, errors may have been made in the precision of the measurements of
the powdered milk causing some samples to have a lighter color than others. Future research
should take care to measure each ingredient carefully and make one larger batch, possibly
doubling the recipe. The other significant difference between the scores of the two panels was
observed in regards to the overall acceptability of the liquid milk product. Significantly higher
overall acceptability rankings were seen from the panel of students and faculty as opposed to
lower rankings seen from the panel of solely experimental foods students. One cause of this
variation may have been that students were less accepting of a frozen product at the time of day
it was served, which was before many of the students ate lunch (Castro 2004). Future research
could assess how willing panelists are to taste the product before sensory analysis is completed.
Limited difficulty was expected when developing a product that met FDA standard for
classification as a “High Calcium” product. The results suggested that achieving the level of
calcium needed for this claim was difficult to attain in a product using only liquid milk as a
calcium source in a serving of 4floz. Both of the recipes did not meet the FDA classifications for
a “good source of Calcium” in children despite the product label’s indications that the products
provided 10% of the DV of Calcium. The RDI for calcium in adults is approximately 1000mg
whereas this is increased in children with an RDI of 1300mg. These results indicated that a
serving of each frozen chocolate pudding contained 100mg of calcium, meeting only 7.7% of the

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DV for children. This could be due to the small volume accepted as a serving size of pudding,
4floz. It would be difficult to provide the 130mg/ serving needed to meet this 10% of the DV of
calcium for children without sacrificing the volume of the other ingredient. This problem would
more easily be resolved in the product containing only dry milk since the liquid volume could
easily be adjusted. Future product development should be done modifying the dry milk volume
in this recipe to further increase calcium content to meet dietary claims requirement.
It would be difficult to determine whether either or both of the frozen chocolate puddings
produced could be considered acceptable to children (age 6­12) in regards to appearance, taste,
texture and overall acceptability since this demographic was not present in any of the panels
conducting sensory analysis.

Conclusion:
An acceptable “High Fiber” pudding product was developed; however, final products did
not meet the desired goal of providing enough calcium to meet dietary calcium claims in the
projected demographic of children age 6­12 years old. It should be noted that products developed
did meet FDA requirements as a “good source of calcium” in adults providing 10% of the Daily
Value of calcium. Due to the limitations of this product development, further research should be
conducted to find an acceptable recipe that provides the 130mg/ serving of calcium needed to
make dietary calcium claims. Sensory analysis results suggested that the frozen chocolate
pudding developed was acceptable in appearance (color), sweetness, texture, and overall
acceptability. With further adjustments to frozen chocolate pudding recipe, these products can be
eaten as snacks as part of a healthy diet for children to improve overall fiber and calcium intake.